UPTOWN — Tuesday afternoon, Anna Adams basked in the warmth of Chicago's early spring weather from on a bench outside her senior citizen building, knowing the tranquil scene wouldn't last long.
"When it really warms up that's when the action starts. You can't even sit out here," said Adams from in front of William Castleman Apartments, at 4945 N. Sheridan Rd. "When it gets warm we have a lot of drug dealing. People drinking at the bus stop, so you can't wait for the bus."
About four years ago, Adams moved into the Chicago Housing Authority building hoping it would be safer than her apartment on Devon Avenue near Lake Michigan in Rogers Park, where she constantly heard gunshots. In 2014, a 28-year-old photographer and innocent bystander was fatally shot when two members of the Conservative Vice Lords fired ten times near her home in the 1300 block of West Devon Avenue on a busy Saturday afternoon.
But she can still hear gunshots on Clarendon Avenue from her apartment on the East side of the building. When she peeks out her window at night she sees drug dealing in the parking lot and solicitation for prostitution, she said.
"I moved over here thinking it would be better, but it's worse over here considering this is supposed to be a senior citizen building," she said.
Last week, Ald. Harry Osterman (48th) unveiled a list of policies and plans police are currently rolling out to reduce violence ahead of the summer months, when crime tends to spike in the neighborhood and across the city. At the meeting, residents echoed similar complaints about quality of life issues such as rampant loitering, drug dealing, public drinking and intoxication.
Ald. Harry Osterman and Cmdr. Sean Loughran speaks to Uptown residents about plans to reduce crime this summer at the Selfhelp Home, at 908 W. Argyle St. [DNAinfo/Josh McGhee]
The cornerstone of Osterman's plan relies on increased foot patrols on problematic streets such as Argyle, where the $3 million high-concept streetscape will be officially unveiled this summer, along with event programming expected to keep residents out on the well-lit street later in the evening.
"There’s a streetscape that’s going to open up this summer in July. It’s going to bring a lot more people to the street in a positive way. Restaurants are going to open up. But there is still an issue with narcotics. There's an issue with public drinking and other hanging around. There’s still an issue with gangs," said Osterman adding officers will not only patrol Argyle, but the area surrounding it, where some of the more violent crimes tend to happen.
In September, two fathers and long-time friends were shot near Goudy School just a block north of Argyle Street. In 2012, 46-year-old Aswell Selmon was shot and killed outside his home on the same block. After the shooting, Osterman said the problem was gang violence and the "community is stuck in the middle of it."
"As long as kids can't walk from McCutcheon and Goudy to go to the park without being nervous, we've got a lot of work to do. But the good news is there’s more people that are getting involved. There’s more activism," said Osterman, adding they'd be working with businesses along with residents to attack the problems.
Before, officers would drive up to groups of loiterers and the groups would disperse, only to return about 20 minutes later, residents said. But Adams says Osterman's new plan gives her hope for more aggressive enforcement.
"Anything would help, she said. "It seems like a good idea if they are walking back and forth. I hope it makes a difference."
Other residents worry the increased foot patrols won't be enough. For the last five years, Nhu Truong has owned Mobile #2 Go, at 1126 W. Argyle St. Over the years, her customers have been bothered by drug addicts, drunks and panhandlers congregating outside the store, she said.
While she's noticed officers patrolling from about 4 p.m. to midnight, she hasn't seen the daytime presence she believes is needed most.
"I don't see much difference because at that time the problems are already gone, so it's made no difference to me," Truong said. "This area needs to be [patrolled] 24-7."
For Vincent Le, who this week plans to open his restaurant, Miss Saigon, at 1129 W. Argyle St., the increased presence was a selling point. He hoped the restaurant would be one of the only places on the block to offer Pho food for late-night eaters. When officers said they'd "be around" he decided it'd be OK to stay open until 2 a.m., he said.
"This area, is it dangerous? No. Do you feel safe at night walking around right now? Probably not. But there is a couple [officers] sitting around here... so I said OK," about staying open late, said Le, adding he hoped the changes would invite more customers to the area after dark.
The foot patrols are similar to tactics law enforcement are using to reduce crime in troubled neighborhoods across the country in lieu of tactics like stop-and-frisk, which has been criticized as unfairly targeting minorities and low-income residents.
At the March 2 meeting, Osterman said: "Through a lot of efforts with the police, through a lot of efforts with the community, through a lot of efforts with business owners, crime has gone down.
"Statistically things are in a better place, but we are at a point where we have to continue to be vigilant."
Being vigilant also extends beyond police patrols. On Tuesday, Osterman and his staff surveyed Argyle Street "looking for big and small things to improve the neighborhood" such as cleaning up vacant storefronts, he said.
"When the streetscape is done we're going to roll out the red carpet and invite everyone in the city to Argyle," said Osterman, adding the new strategy was a work in progress, but would lead to "better quality of life ... from a community standpoint.
"It's not [about] locking people up, but eliminating that behavior that people are complaining about."
Residents enjoy signs of spring along Argyle Street Tuesday [DNAinfo/Josh McGhee]
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